The Oktoberfest Cookbook is a collection of traditional Bavarian Oktoberfest recipes. The first festival was the wedding celebration of Crown Prince Ludwig to Princess Therese in 1810. The ground in Munich where the festival was held is called Theresienwiese and the current location is nicknamed “wiesn”. Only traditional Munich breweries may serve beer specifically brewed for the Oktoberfest festival. The annual event was held in October until 1972 when it was moved to September due to better weather conditions.
The recipe book starts off with snacks and soups and I would like to try the homemade leberwurst (p15) as well as the freshly smoked trout fillets (p20). This recipe also includes instructions on how to make a homemade smoker which is most useful. The matjes fillets (p27) remind me of my mom’s sister as she ordered them when we ate out in Germany. For winter, the hearty goulash soup (p33) sounds ideal. The following chapter covers mains and I liked the sound of the beef roulade (p61) as well as the venison stew (p65). I still have to make whole duck and for this task, the crispy duck (p70) is perfect. Another recipe to try is the Oktoberfest chicken (p74) before I move on to the vegetarian and side dishes. Here I would make spinach spaetzle (p82), another dish to remind me of our visit to Germany. The creamy wild mushroom stew (p89) sounds scrummy and I need to make the red cabbage (p99) in winter. I also want to try making pretzel cheese sticks (p113). The book ends with sweet treats and baked goods and I am definitely going to try my hand at millirahm strudel (p120), the fluffy kaiserscharrn (p124) and the gingerbread hearts (p136).
Oktoberfest Cookbook also includes useful information such as what to wear, a guide to the beer tents as well as the six traditional Munich breweries, Oktoberfest attractions and how to survive your visit. There is a where, when, what, how section as well as a glossary of phrases that will be sure to come in handy. Oktoberfest Cookbook has a quaint feeling about it with good photographs.
Publishing information:
Penguin Random House South Africa sent me this recipe book to review.
What I blogged June 8:
- one year ago – Potato Frittata
- three years ago – Duck
- four years ago – Double Chocolate, Chocolate Brownies
- five years ago – Oak Smoked Red Bell Pepper Chicken
- six years ago – Eating in Assisi
We were planning on going to Oktoberfest this year, but getting pregnant kind of got in the way of that 🙂 All the food there looks amazing though.
Haha, that would not make for a worthwhile trip!
Hi Tandy, goulash was something that my grandma always made and I have yet to find a similar recipe. I will have to check out this book, everything sounds delicious!
I wish you could recreate her recipe and share it Cheri 🙂
I love a cookbook that is centered around a celebration! I also don’t know enough about German food!
I grew up eating German food 🙂